Museum gives out glasses ahead of transit of Venus

TAIPEI--The Taipei Astronomical Museum said Friday it will give away eclipse glasses on the following two weekends in the runup to the transit of Venus that will occur on June 6.

A limited number of eclipse shades will be given to museum visitors between 9-11 a.m. and 1:30-4 p.m. on May 26-27 and June 2-3, the museum said in a statement.

The rare astronomical event, which was last seen in Taiwan in 2004, will not take place again until 2117, the museum added.

The transit of Venus, which is like a miniature solar eclipse, occurs when the planet passes between the Sun and Earth and can be seen as a black spot moving across the face of the Sun, the museum said.

Members of the public should wear protective glasses to view the five-star sight, the museum cautioned, adding that people should not observe the phenomenon for more than 30 seconds at a time.

Starting at 6:11 a.m. (Taiwan time), the full transit of Venus is expected to last six hours and 36 minutes and will be visible in places like Taiwan, eastern China, eastern Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, while some other parts of the world will only see part of it, according to the museum.